The fourth line sets the tone…
Boston's rugged winger, Shawn Thornton, took the initiative and scored the Bruins first goal versus Ottawa.

At just 5:24 of the first period, Thornton’s goal also set a new season-high in NHL goals for the strapping forward and more-than-occasional pugilist -- three.

Coach complimented the fourth line’s game tonight noting their success comes from the fact “that they really haven’t complicated their game. They get the puck, they get it deep and they forecheck with a purpose…They always have a third man high, they always got a guy fore-checking hard, and they are just playing the game the way it should be played, in a simple manner. Don’t have to over think, they just do it right.”

A memorable first in the first…
After scoring a shootout goal Feb. 19th in Carolina, it was only a matter of time (8 days to be exact) before David Krecji scored his first official NHL goal.

At 17:23 in the first, he did just that giving the Bruins a 2-0 lead over the Senators going into the second period. David joins the ranks of fellow teammates, Milan Lucic, Jeremy Reich, Vladimir Sobotka, and Matt Lashoff as the fifth Bruin to score his first NHL goal this season.

Adding to the story, it seems that Thornton had it all planned out from the beginning:
“Right after I scored I sat next to Krejci on the bench and told him he was going to get his tonight. A few shifts later he scored.”

Shut DownTim Thomas seized his sixth NHL shutout and recorded his second "zero" of the season with some unbelievable saves. He stopped all 22 Senators shots on goal.

Tuesday’s contest also marked the second straight game that the Senators were kept off the score sheet, as they lost a 5-0 decision to Toronto Monday. The last Senator to score was Daniel Alfredsson at 4:56 of overtime on February 23rd in Pittsburgh -- a 120:04 scoreless stretch.

Smooth Sailing…
With less than two minutes to go in the third, Zdeno Chara’s second goal of the night cemented the Bruins already well-established lead over the Senators at 4-0.

Chara launched the puck from the top left of the face-off circle in the Bruins zone and the puck sailed into Ottawa’s empty net to ice the victory.

With his two goals, Chara also cruised on up in the NHL standings, and secured himself 7th place in points amongst defensemen. On top of that, his latest two goals landed Chara a new season-high in points with 44.

Now that’s Big, Z!

A Present for Coach J…
Tonight’s outcome is especially memorable for Coach Claude Julien as it marked his 300th NHL game.

The B’s win tonight also snapped their four-game losing skid at home.

As their first game at home since February 12th and after coming off a highly productive five game road trip, Coach recognized, “it was important for us to bounce back”.

The B’s did just that and then some:
“We got better as the game went on. Again, they found a way to win by doing the right things, at the right times, and at key points in the game.”

Although the standings remained tight after tonight’s game (the Bruins are tied with the Rangers for sixth place seat in the Eastern Conference), there is no denying that the Bruins push for the playoffs is in high gear.